New Feature!

Posted on March 31, 2012 by Gerald Lafon

I’ve added a new feature to my blog, which allows you to subscribe to my blog and receive automatic email notifications when I publish a new post.  This feature is located in the right column just above the calendar.

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When Helping Actually Undermines

Posted on April 27, 2012 by Gerald Lafon

From time to time, I have fathers with little or no Judo background who insert themselves into their child’s Judo training.  They’re well-meaning, perhaps a bit overly-involved in their child’s sport experience, and usually create problems for the coaching staff and by extension the child they seek to help.  This problem is not unique to Judo.  It’s pervasive anytime sports and fathers come together.

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Sell the Educational Benefits!

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Gerald Lafon

I just finished my cardio workout, which as usual consisted of riding my mountain bike around my neighborhood, and in particular through one of our community sports parks with baseball fields.  Observing baseball kids in inactivity for 95% of the time they’re on the field has encouraged me to say that we in Judo are missing the boat on the powers of our sport, especially when it comes to physical education benefits.

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40 Years and Counting

Posted on March 31, 2012 by Gerald Lafon

I’ve been absent for the last three weeks for a good reason.  Last weekend, I celebrated my club’s 40th anniversary, and by extension my 40 years as a Judo coach.  We held a bash at our club for the occasion.  Past and present members showed up for a great reunion that featured a nostalgic slideshow, empowering speeches, renewed friendships, and lots of food.

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Another dilemma: bad Judo or no Judo?

Posted on March 8, 2012 by Gerald Lafon

One of the last questions I posed my daughter Valerie when I interviewed her for the Outgrowing the Garage post I wrote two weeks ago was, “What words of wisdom would you have for anyone who wanted to start teaching Judo?”  Her response surprised me a little, but it made sense.

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R.I.P., Dad

Posted on February 28, 2012 by Gerald Lafon

I was all set to tackle my weekly blog post yesterday, when I was notified that my father Pierre had passed away unexpectedly at age 87 in Cannes, France.  He was in excellent health, and I had assumed he’d live to be 100 just like his father had.  Instead, he caught a virulent form of pneumonia and died within two days of being admitted to the hospital.  So today, I get to talk about my dad.

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Outgrowing the Garage

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Gerald Lafon

Over the years, I’ve had many inquiries about starting a Judo club from scratch.  My first impulse is to encourage coaches to start in a garage and then move into bigger facilities once membership can sustain the overhead.  And that’s what SoCal Judo did in Temecula, California.

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The International Freestyle Judo Alliance

Posted on February 15, 2012 by Gerald Lafon

As a follow up to my last post (Show me the evidence!) I’m happy to announce that I’ve created a Facebook group, which is dedicated to bring together the Judo community that is disenchanted with IJF’s misguided leadership.  The group is called the International Judo Freestyle Alliance.  The idea for this group comes from Steve Scott, the founder of AAU Freestyle Judo rules.  He picked my brain, asked me what I thought, and voila!  A voice of sanity.

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Show Me the Evidence!

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Gerald Lafon

Several months ago, I had a heated discussion with my assistant coach who happens to be an international referee.  As usual, the conversation revolved around the silly IJF rules, and how he could not support my transition away from IJF rules Judo to my own version of Judo competition, which is similar to AAU Freestyle Judo.  Upon telling him that I needed to move on in order to keep Judo relevant, and that lots of people had similar concerns and had made the same decision as I had, he demanded that I show him the evidence. Furthermore, he stated that he wasn’t interested in Judo that can’t be done outside the dojo.  Small mind.

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Profession or Occupation?

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Gerald Lafon

I’ve been working on developing a character development and leadership program for my juniors.  As a U.S. Marine, I remember the core values that made me a Marine- honor, courage, commitment.  Since I don’t really have time to reinvent the wheel, I am liberally borrowing from Marine Corps character and leadership principles.

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